Ooh, fun topic, and I've got a few that I think you'll like. First Janis Ian's "Play Like A Girl" goes along with your personal story about sports -- https://youtu.be/XmooQq7bH8I
"When I was ten years old, I was told -- / You can't play baseball / You've got to pitch underhand / You can't throw it like a man / It won't be any fun at all"
...
"Now all over this big wide world / I play [guitar] like a girl / From the California lights to the Serengetti nights / I play like a girl"
“I have sung Joxer at almost every gig for 30 years, maybe 3,000 times. I still enjoy those four minutes, still love dogs howling at the moon and the roars forever celebrating Ray Houghton’s goal.
A childhood favorite of mine that I was enjoying again last year, Charlie King's "New Race To Run" written based on a news story he saw about the track athlete who quit his sport to focus on anti-apartheid activism, but I think it holds up well even without that specific context. Part of why it resonated so strongly with me as a child and still feels relevant is the way it captures the anxiety of, "I had something I knew I was good at. I want to try something else; I don't know if I'll be as successful at this, but I still have to try." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLUCIrk2wsc
"The Old Playground" by Bruce Hornsby has one of the best lines about pick-up basketball "The old sage frowns, he says just pass it on around / But all-world junior's pulling up from downtown" -- https://youtu.be/0NgDdermIAo
Finally I love Wayne Henderson's instrumental version of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" -- which starts by playing the tune slow and soulful and then switches to double-time: https://youtu.be/ln7y3ow3PI8
Plus the Gordie Howe tribute song, "They Call Him Mr. Hockey" is cheesy, silly, and everything you'd want https://youtu.be/ZxZw0Mil7qA
"To record it, I probably played it 200 times. And since then, I’d say the total is pushing 4,000. Every tour we did, we’d soundcheck with it as well. Three times a day, five times a week. What’s surprising is how big it is internationally. "
Great list. I've got a few more. Chuck Brodsky has a whole album of baseball songs. Like so many sports songs they're usually something more to the song than the just the sport of it.
My two faves from Chuck are:
Letters in the Dirt - A song about Chuck's relationship with his dad centered around the controversial Phillies player, Ritchie Allen. Love this song.
Bonehead Merkle - 1908, Fred Merkle forgets to touch second and as a result the Giants don't win the pennant. Merkle becomes the Bill Buckner of his time. Later he gets redemption with a standing O at an old timers day.
To get away from baseball. Chuck also has Hockey Fight.
Dan Bern is another songwriter with a lot of sports songs.
Tiger Woods is a great song. Really not about golf though.
Gamblin' with my Love - A song about Pete Rose and Bart Giamatti and of course relationships (with Dan's girlfriend's part sung by Martha Wainwright).
Thanks so much, Alan. I am thrilled there is a tune about Merkel's Boner. What a tragic tale. Very Buckneresque. And I need to go listen to that Pete Rose tune right away. Thanks for being here, my friend.
My pleasure Matty. It's fun thinking about these things.
Ooh, fun topic, and I've got a few that I think you'll like. First Janis Ian's "Play Like A Girl" goes along with your personal story about sports -- https://youtu.be/XmooQq7bH8I
"When I was ten years old, I was told -- / You can't play baseball / You've got to pitch underhand / You can't throw it like a man / It won't be any fun at all"
...
"Now all over this big wide world / I play [guitar] like a girl / From the California lights to the Serengetti nights / I play like a girl"
Second, I was recently amazed to see this comment by Christy Moore about "Joxer Goes To Stuttgart" -- not something that many songwriters get to (or want to) say: https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/heritage/christy-moore-i-ve-sung-joxer-goes-to-stuttgart-3-000-times-1.3516377
“I have sung Joxer at almost every gig for 30 years, maybe 3,000 times. I still enjoy those four minutes, still love dogs howling at the moon and the roars forever celebrating Ray Houghton’s goal.
A childhood favorite of mine that I was enjoying again last year, Charlie King's "New Race To Run" written based on a news story he saw about the track athlete who quit his sport to focus on anti-apartheid activism, but I think it holds up well even without that specific context. Part of why it resonated so strongly with me as a child and still feels relevant is the way it captures the anxiety of, "I had something I knew I was good at. I want to try something else; I don't know if I'll be as successful at this, but I still have to try." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLUCIrk2wsc
"The Old Playground" by Bruce Hornsby has one of the best lines about pick-up basketball "The old sage frowns, he says just pass it on around / But all-world junior's pulling up from downtown" -- https://youtu.be/0NgDdermIAo
Finally I love Wayne Henderson's instrumental version of "Take Me Out To The Ballgame" -- which starts by playing the tune slow and soulful and then switches to double-time: https://youtu.be/ln7y3ow3PI8
Plus the Gordie Howe tribute song, "They Call Him Mr. Hockey" is cheesy, silly, and everything you'd want https://youtu.be/ZxZw0Mil7qA
These are great, Nick. Thanks for sharing. Great note on the Christy Moore tune as well.
Yeah, there aren't many songwriters who have a song that stays in their repertoire for that long -- and still enjoy it.
Though, apparently, that also includes The Darkness (though they're counting sound-check performances): https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2023/jan/23/why-dont-we-just-write-the-stupidest-song-ever-how-the-darkness-made-i-believe-in-a-thing-called-love
"To record it, I probably played it 200 times. And since then, I’d say the total is pushing 4,000. Every tour we did, we’d soundcheck with it as well. Three times a day, five times a week. What’s surprising is how big it is internationally. "
That is a great story about The Darkness. So rare the band doesn't wind up hating its biggest hit.
Nice to see The Tragically Hip and The Weakerthans representing Canada...
Always happy to fly that flag high. Too bad I couldn't think of a Sloan tune about sports to round out the triumvirate.
Great list. I've got a few more. Chuck Brodsky has a whole album of baseball songs. Like so many sports songs they're usually something more to the song than the just the sport of it.
My two faves from Chuck are:
Letters in the Dirt - A song about Chuck's relationship with his dad centered around the controversial Phillies player, Ritchie Allen. Love this song.
Bonehead Merkle - 1908, Fred Merkle forgets to touch second and as a result the Giants don't win the pennant. Merkle becomes the Bill Buckner of his time. Later he gets redemption with a standing O at an old timers day.
To get away from baseball. Chuck also has Hockey Fight.
Dan Bern is another songwriter with a lot of sports songs.
Tiger Woods is a great song. Really not about golf though.
Gamblin' with my Love - A song about Pete Rose and Bart Giamatti and of course relationships (with Dan's girlfriend's part sung by Martha Wainwright).
Thanks so much, Alan. I am thrilled there is a tune about Merkel's Boner. What a tragic tale. Very Buckneresque. And I need to go listen to that Pete Rose tune right away. Thanks for being here, my friend.